Smoking and Tobacco

News about Smoking and Tobacco, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Jul. 23, 2015

New generation of e-cigarettes are delivering jolt of caffeine to those in need of quick fix. MORE

Jul. 8, 2015

CVS Health Corp says it will resign from United States Chamber of Commerce in wake of reports that chamber and foreign affiliates are engaging in worldwide lobbying campaign against antismoking laws. MORE

Jul. 1, 2015

United States Chamber of Commerce and its overseas affiliates are powerful ally of tobacco industry, working around world to battle antismoking laws; supporting tobacco lobby is priority for world's largest trade group; industry faces peril from global treaty backed by World Health Organization, as well as new flurry of legislation worldwide. MORE

Jun. 5, 2015

Author Choire Sicha describes his experience giving up a 30-year smoking habit, losing some of his identity but gaining valuable midlife perspective. MORE

Jun. 2, 2015

Beijing enacts ban on smoking in all enclosed public places and some outdoor areas; officials insist that, despite two widely ignored previous attempts, ban will be strictly enforced this time; city residents are skeptical that anything will change. MORE

May. 26, 2015

Joe Nocera Op-Ed column describes speaking with Mitch Zeller, head of Food and Drug Administration's Center for Tobacco Products, about debate surrounding electronic cigarettes; notes Zeller believes challenge he is faced with is considering relative dangers of different nicotine delivery devices, and that society should recognize that ultimately, debate is about minimizing risks to those addicted to nicotine. MORE

May. 14, 2015

Dr Scott Halpern study in The New England Journal of Medicine finds penalizing those trying to quit smoking for failing to stay off cigarettes is more effective than offering awards for success. MORE

May. 5, 2015

Letter from former Rep Patrick J Kennedy and former drug policy adviser Kevin A Sabet comments on both April 23 editorial and David A Kessler and Matthew L Myers Op-Ed about dangers of e-cigarettes. MORE

Apr. 25, 2015

Hawaii Legislature approves bill that would make it first state to raise legal smoking age to 21 from 18; measure now goes to Gov David Ige, with whom its fate is unclear. MORE

Apr. 23, 2015

Law banning smoking in bars in New Orleans goes into effect; some people laud ban while others are suing over it, but most patrons seem to be taking it in stride. MORE

Apr. 23, 2015

Editorial warns of threats presented by rise of e-cigarettes, especially dangers they pose to young people who are using them at record rates and are being increasingly targeted by tobacco companies; observes whatever health claims e-cigarettes may have, nicotine remains a highly toxic and addictive substance; calls on FDA to ban youth-oriented flavors and packaging. MORE

Apr. 23, 2015

Op-Ed article by policy experts David A Kessler and Matthew L Myers warns e-cigarette use is skyrocketing among young people, as tobacco companies deploy same marketing tactics they used to addict generations of teenagers to cigarettes; calls on FDA to undertake robust regulation of e-cigarette marketing techniques. MORE

Apr. 18, 2015

Joe Nocera Op-Ed column asserts Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2015 National Youth Tobacco Survey, in reporting tripling of e-cigarette use among teens over one year, masks more significant news that combustible cigarette use has dropped to 9.2 percent; holds decline is most likely due to rise in e-cigarettes, which are far less damaging to one's health; says report, in equating combustible and e-cigarette use, does disservice to public health. MORE

Apr. 17, 2015

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey finds dramatic rise in e-cigarette use by teenagers, many of whom perceive devices as healthy alternative to cigarettes; use among middle- and high school students has risen to 13 percent, exceeding rate of tobacco use for first time; implications of shift remain poorly understood as scientists and policy makers attempt to keep pace with new technology. MORE

Apr. 11, 2015

Panel of experts assembled by Food and Drug Admin rejects argument from company Swedish Match that its smokeless tobacco product Snus is far less harmful than cigarettes and should be labeled as a less dangerous; panel's recommendations are not binding but anti-smoking advocates speculate that, based on such findings, FDA would be unlikely to approve company's application. MORE

Apr. 9, 2015

Swedish tobacco company Swedish Match hopes to convince Food and Drug Administration that snus, smokeless tobacco product popular in Sweden, is less harmful than cigarettes and should not be labeled with same harsh health warnings; if successful, decision could fundamentally change tobacco regulation in United States. MORE

Feb. 24, 2015

Joe Sharkey On the Road column recalls the time before federal government, after years of pressure from Association of Flight Attendants, banned smoking on most domestic flights in 1990; points out today every commercial flight is smoke-free. MORE

Feb. 23, 2015

A study linking an extra five diseases and 60,000 deaths to tobacco use, and the popularity of e-cigarettes, should push the F.D.A. into action. MORE

Feb. 20, 2015

Reynolds American unit Niconovum will work with Pinney Associates to develop new type of nicotine gum and other nicotine-replacement products including electronic cigarettes. MORE

Feb. 18, 2015

Study in Journal of the American Medical Assn finds that medication designed to help patients quit smoking, typically administered when patient feels they are ready to quit, can be effective even for those who feel they are not ready, opening door for eventual cessation. MORE

Feb. 15, 2015

Editorial highlights study published in New England Journal of Medicine finding that smoking is even more harmful to health than previously thought; calls on government to expand efforts to help smokers quit, particularly state governments in the United States through programs like Medicaid. MORE

Feb. 12, 2015

Study in The New England Journal of Medicine suggests at least five diseases and 60,000 annual deaths should be linked to tobacco in United States; smoking is already tied to nearly half a million US deaths a year from 21 diseases including 12 forms of cancer. MORE

Feb. 4, 2015

CDC data shows that Americans' exposure to secondhand smoke has fallen by 50 percent since 2000 as municipalities have moved to ban smoking in public places and number of smokers has declined. MORE

Jan. 27, 2015

Joe Nocera Op-Ed column criticizes misleading conclusions drawn from Portland State University study finding that some electronic cigarettes produce formaldehyde, a cancer-causing agent, when used at high voltages; says study does not show that devices are dangerous when used normally, but that anti-tobacco activists have nonetheless used it to scare cigarette smokers away from what could be a far healthier habit. MORE

Jan. 23, 2015

New Orleans City Council, overruling objections from businessmen, votes unanimously to ban smoking in bars and gambling halls; owners had strongly objected that ban would hurt income and tax revenue; city was among last in country to allow smoking in bars. MORE

Jan. 19, 2015

Op-Ed article by American Enterprise Institute scholar Sally Satel holds that success of electronic cigarettes, safer alternative to tobacco smoking, is being hindered by Food and Drug Administration's delay in regulating product; urges administration to set interim safety guidelines to assuage public concerns, rather than relying on burdensome regulation process. MORE

Jan. 13, 2015

Product called JuJu Joint, available in Washington State, where marijuana is legal, marks long-anticipated marriage of e-cigarette technology and cannabis; some addiction researchers fear that device, which has no smoke or smell, will lead to psychiatric and health problems, especially among young people. MORE

Dec. 29, 2014

Editorial demands federal rules to prevent child labor in tobacco fields, practice allowable under law as long as parents give consent; applauds move by some tobacco companies to restrict child labor; warns since Rep David Cicilline's bill prohibiting children under age 18 from working in tobacco fields is unlikely to pass in Republican-controlled Congress, Obama administration can utilize Department of Labor to enact age restrictions. MORE

Dec. 25, 2014

Big tobacco companies are pouring their money and resources into developing cigarette alternatives in effort to dominate potentially lucrative new e-cigarette market; are experimenting with dozens of high-tech instruments to deliver nicotine even as industry critics and health officials warn that new devices could create another generation of addicts (Series: The New Smoke). MORE

Dec. 17, 2014

National Institute on Drug Abuse survey measuring for the first time the use of e-cigarettes by teenagers finds such activity has surpassed use of traditional cigarettes; survey was taken among nation's middle and high school students, measuring their alcohol and drug use for 2014. MORE

Dec. 14, 2014

Growing popularity of electronic cigarettes fuels e-cigarette boom in China, which is expected to ship more than 300 million of the devices to United States and Europe; enormous supply chain for e-cigarettes is largely unregulated by Chinese authorities, and experts say lack of oversight could account for some of heavy metals, carcinogens and other dangerous compounds that have been detected in some of the devices (Series: The New Smoke). MORE

Dec. 5, 2014

Editorial warns Food and Drug Administration that softer warning labels on smokeless tobacco products, which has been requested by Swedish Match, may only lure more people into the nicotine market; contends that link between smokeless tobacco products like Swedish Match's gum and lower rates of smoking and tobacco-related diseases is unclear. MORE

Dec. 2, 2014

Michael George Patterson, 59-year-old Native Alaskan lifelong smoker who is chronically ill, tells high school students in Juneau about his impending death and encourages them to avoid smoking; is one of more than two dozen people selected by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to speak out against tobacco use. MORE

Nov. 30, 2014

Large body of research suggests that so-called snus, oral tobacco product manufactured by Swedish Match, appears to increase the risk of mouth cancer and some other cancers; effects are nonetheless modest in comparison to the array of lethal risks posed by smoking; analysis of extant research is offered. MORE

Nov. 30, 2014

Swedish Match, tobacco company that manufacturers oral 'snus' packets, has filed petition with the Food and Drug Administration to declare its smokeless product less harmful than cigarettes; circumstance raises question of whether warning labels on tobacco products should take into account varying degrees of risk (Series: The New Smoke). MORE

Nov. 29, 2014

Joe Nocera Op-Ed column submits that development of e-cigarette industry has been met by executives with mix of cautious optimism and frustration; notes that while proponents hope to market electronic cigarettes as healthy alternative to tobacco smoking, some in health care field have been resistant to idea. MORE

Nov. 27, 2014

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that smoking rate in United States dropped to 17.8 percent in 2013, slightly lower than 18.1 percent in 2012. MORE

Nov. 25, 2014

Research shows that smoking through hookah, considered to be harmless by some, is serious health risk. MORE

Nov. 20, 2014

Board of Health in Westminster, Mass, votes to drop proposal to ban sale of tobacco and nicotine products, week after public hearing protesting possible ban. MORE

Nov. 18, 2014

Residents of Westminster, Mass, are bristling at becoming first town in country to ban sale of cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars and chewing tobacco; only 17 percent of people in town of 7,400 are smokers, but many perceive ban as frontal assault on their individual liberties. MORE

Nov. 17, 2014

Exposure to secondhand smoke and roadway traffic may be tied to increased body mass index in children and adolescents, a new study suggests. MORE

Nov. 11, 2014

Medicare will cover annual screenings for lung cancer for four million older Americans with long history of heavy smoking; draft decision by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will extend coverage for CT scans to Medicare beneficiaries who smoked at least a pack a day for 30 years or the equivalent. MORE

Nov. 9, 2014

Case brought by lawyer Jason Luckasevic against the NFL on behalf of former players who suffered brain injuries is moving toward final settlement, which could prove to be a legal and regulatory nightmare for the league; case raises possibility that template for future of football is that of the tobacco industry. MORE

Oct. 23, 2014

Reynolds American, maker of Camel cigarettes, says it will bar smoking in its offices and buildings in 2015. MORE

Oct. 18, 2014

Michael Wilson Crime Scene column says high taxes on tobacco in New York is fueling cigarette smuggling; notes a pack of Marlboros purchased at Virginia's low prices and sold at New York City's going rate, can put five or six dollars in seller's pocket. MORE

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